Tuesday, 12 March 2013

A rolling stone gathers no moss

Here's a song about moving: "Moving to L.A." by Art Brut. It's a pretty funny song about Eddie wanting to move to Los Angeles. Lyrics are quite simple with the "I'm considering moving to L.A." repeated over and over. .…

Seriously, Art Brut is pretty awesome. I've seen the band a few times, and they are really funny. "Singer" Eddie Argos doesn't really sing. He talks through his songs, not like Mark E Smith, it's hard to explain. You just have to listen to an Art Brut song to get what I mean.

Anyway, Rolling Stone just unleashed their brand new track, "Arizona Bay" (which is from their upcoming best of compilation album Top of the Pops). Am I being generous in calling it a 'best of'? Who cares, Art Brut deserves this.

The two-disc Top of the Pops (named after the defunct BBC television "live" show) will be celebrating the band's 10 year anniversary. The release includes all your favorites like "Formed a Band", "My Little Brother" (just discovered Rock n Roll!!!), "DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake" - but also brand new tracks! New tracks include the previously mentioned "Arizona Bay" and "We Make Pop Music".

In typical Argos wit, he explains that his band has always followed the "Classic Rock Band" textbook stuff:

Album One, Excited
Album Two, Confused
Album Three, Angry
Album Four, Experimental

Anyway, the second disc includes demos, rarities, and live tracks. If you love Art Brut as much as I do, you definitely will want to get the compilation, coming out April 16th via The End Records.

It’s hard to listen to Pert Near Sandstone’s bluegrass jams and not start dancing. This St. Paul based band will be performing at First Avenue for their Ship of Fools 7” Release Party on March 29, 2013 and their jammin’ will continue from there through the Midwest and Western States. Their shows are guaranteed to be a blast so get your tickets now while they’re still available!!

Comments

Here's a song about moving: "Moving to L.A." by Art Brut. It's a pretty funny song about Eddie wanting to move to Los Angeles. Lyrics are quite simple with the "I'm considering moving to L.A." repeated over and over. .…

Seriously, Art Brut is pretty awesome. I've seen the band a few times, and they are really funny. "Singer" Eddie Argos doesn't really sing. He talks through his songs, not like Mark E Smith, it's hard to explain. You just have to listen to an Art Brut song to get what I mean.

Anyway, Rolling Stone just unleashed their brand new track, "Arizona Bay" (which is from their upcoming best of compilation album Top of the Pops). Am I being generous in calling it a 'best of'? Who cares, Art Brut deserves this.

The two-disc Top of the Pops (named after the defunct BBC television "live" show) will be celebrating the band's 10 year anniversary. The release includes all your favorites like "Formed a Band", "My Little Brother" (just discovered Rock n Roll!!!), "DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshake" - but also brand new tracks! New tracks include the previously mentioned "Arizona Bay" and "We Make Pop Music".

In typical Argos wit, he explains that his band has always followed the "Classic Rock Band" textbook stuff:

Album One, Excited
Album Two, Confused
Album Three, Angry
Album Four, Experimental

Anyway, the second disc includes demos, rarities, and live tracks. If you love Art Brut as much as I do, you definitely will want to get the compilation, coming out April 16th via The End Records.

It’s hard to listen to Pert Near Sandstone’s bluegrass jams and not start dancing. This St. Paul based band will be performing at First Avenue for their Ship of Fools 7” Release Party on March 29, 2013 and their jammin’ will continue from there through the Midwest and Western States. Their shows are guaranteed to be a blast so get your tickets now while they’re still available!!

The Jesus and Mary Chain: Barbed Wire Kisses by Zoë Howe (St Martin's Press)
The Scottish shoegazing / alternative band The Jesus and Mary Chain has a new book written by Zoë Howe called The Jesus and Mary Chain: Barbed Wire Kisses (named after their 1999 album) out today on St Martin's Press.

The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer (Grand Central Publishing)
With this upcoming sold out show at the Cedar Cultural Center on Sunday, November 16th, I see that it is essentially a book signing tour for her new book The Art of Asking.... however, knowing Palmer, I am pretty there will be some singing/dancing involved, as well as an appearance from Neil Gaiman and other special guests.

Brian Jones: The Making of the Rolling Stones by Paul Trynka (Viking)
The vast majority of the book is focused on Brian Jones and the early days of the Rolling Stones, like the book title suggest, but like many of you, I was more interested in his death - which happened less than a month after he was walked away from the band.

A Man Called Destruction: The Life and Music of Alex Chilton, From Box Tops to Big Star to Backdoor Man by Holly George-Warren (Viking)
Fans searching for an account of the life of enigmatic and underappreciated singer/songwriter Alex Chilton need look no further; March 24th marks the release of “A Man Called Destruction” by Holly George-Warren, a thorough and highly enjoyable document of Chilton’s life and career.

Eminent Hipsters by Donald Fagen (Viking)
Eminent Hipsters is the new memoir by Donald Fagen, best known as the singer/songwriter of 70's jazz/rock band, Steely Dan.
I can't hear "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" without instantly being transported back to childhood memories of riding in the way, way back of my parent's station wagon, with the ol' Steely Dan cassette playing in the woodgrain dashboard.

Autobiography by Morrissey (Penguin Classics)
As a Morrissey fan, I should tell you that this is the first time Morrissey will tell his story in his own words. Previously official biography Landscapes of the Mind by David Bret was, how shall I say it, boring.

Stone Roses: War and Peace by Simon Spence (St. Martin's Griffin)
When I started reading War and Peace, I quickly realized how very little I knew about the Stone Roses. Most of my recollections of the band were through the NME, Melody Maker, and Select Magazines, which does not really paint a picture of how it was back then.

2015:
Since Select Magazine went away in 2000, Uncut Magazine took over as my favorite music magazine. In their latest issue, which came out in the stores in the UK this week (January 27th), they featured the 30th Anniversary of Meat is Murder with a The Smiths cover.